One Month
by Shir0
Summary: Love was a very interesting thing. It came in so many forms, yet it was rare to find the true love that was favored so highly in fairy tales and stories. For Shinjiro, the end was inevitable. For Minako, the possibilities were endless. M for later cont.
1. Prologue: Just Another Day

_New story alert! Let's do this. This story is called "One Month" and it's Minako/Shinji. It's just my take on the Moon S-Link with some personal changes and such. The reason that this is rated M is that this will have sexual content around the end of the story._

**PROLOGUE: Just Another Day**

It's just another day

For you and me

In paradise

**ANOTHER DAY IN PARADISE **(Phil Collins)

**Monday, August 24****th****, 2009**

"Dammit, I'm tired of your nagging." Shinjiro Aragaki stared at Akihiko Sanada with tilted angry eyes, his eyebrows furrowed.

Akihiko looked unfazed, giving Shinjiro the same look. "I'm sorry, but I won't take no for an answer." The two stood outside the Hagakure, a ramen shop at the Iwatodai Strip Mall.

Looking away, Shinjiro replied bitterly, "Well the answer's still the same: I'm not coming back." He slid his hands in his pockets and turned to leave, not willing to put up with Akihiko's annoying talks.

"You know," Akihiko called out, "another new Persona-user joined us…and he's not human." The boxer was referring to the dog, Koromaru, which they met earlier at the shrine where the priest used to reside.

"…What?" Shinjiro looked surprised.

"It's a dog," Akihiko explained, holding back a smirk. "He lost his master six months ago because of the Shadows." It wasn't always that Akihiko got to push Shinjiro into a corner. "He's incredibly loyal… Up 'til now, he's been guarding the spot where his master was killed…" He paused for effect. "…despite the bad memories." _And he still walks along the same path his always went when the priest was alive… _Akihiko added in his head.

"…." Shinjiro looked away. At that moment, Ken Amada came out from the Manga store, Book On.

"Huh?" Ken mumbled when he saw two figures outside Hagakure. "Oh, it's Sanada-san." For a moment, he looked confused, but shrugged it off. "Who's he talking to? I guess it'd be rude to butt in…"

Akihiko didn't notice Ken's entrance and kept talking with Shinjiro seriously, reminding him of the painful memories Shinjiro tried to hide. "We saw someone die right before our eyes, too… But it's been two years since then…" The grey haired boxer bit his lip and looked away as Shinjiro looked down at the floor. "How long do you plan to beat yourself up over it?" He took a sharp breath and continued. "You're always at that spot behind the station, even though you don't hang out with the crowd there."

Finally, Shinjiro spoke up. "It doesn't matter," he said quietly. "It was my fault, and it can't be erased. What difference does it make if I come to terms with it?" Tilting his head up, he glared furiously at Akihiko, his anger pouring into the boxer's eyes. "It won't change _anything. _This isn't the same as what happened to _Miki._"

Akihiko flinched at the sound of his sister's name. "Shinji…"

"That's enough already," Shinjiro pressed. "I just wanna forget it ever happened." The man in the long red coat and black beanie walked away swiftly, his blood boiling at the memories of what happened two years ago.

Ken, who had heard the conversation, recapped what was said in his head. "Two…Two years ago…" He gasped in surprise. "It can't be…" Anger coursed through his veins as realization kicked in. "So his name is Shinji, huh…?"

**Friday, August 28****th****, 2009**

Minako yawned and sat up slowly, stretching her muscles out contently, enjoying the last days of her summer break, when she heard a knock on her door.

"It's me," the obvious voice of Mitsuru Kirijo told. "I apologize for the interruption, but do you have a moment?" She sounded ready to talk, so Minako stood up and walked to the door slowly, blinking her sleepiness out.

The junior girl opened the door and let the senior into her room. "Good morning," Mitsuru greeted warmly, flashing a soft smile. Minako nodded. "The Chairman will be here tonight. We'll meet on the 4th floor as usual. That's all."

Mitsuru left the room and slammed the door shut without any more words and left Minako in her room. The younger girl yawned again and fell onto her bed, falling asleep again.

**Evening**

Everyone met up in the dormitory lounge, including Shuji Ikutsuki, the Chairman. "Good, you're all here," he greeted in his exuberant voice. "Please come in," Ikutsuki called to someone outside the door.

Ken Amada slid in slowly and looked at everyone, then began to speak. "Sorry to interrupt." He took a seat next to Ikutsuki.

"You must be kidding…" Akihiko grumbled, clenching the couch seat tightly.

"After running several tests, we've learned that he has more than adequate potential," Ikutsuki said with a grin, adjusting his glasses against the bridge of his nose. "I called this meeting so that I could introduce him, since he'll be joining our squad."

Mitsuru looked appalled and quickly made an argument. "B-but Mr. Chairman, he's still in elementary school. Besides…"

"Besides…what?" Ikutsuki stayed silent for a moment, but when it was obvious Mitsuru didn't have anything else to say, he kept talking. "His ability is quite promising. With the proper training, he could be a big help."

It was Akihiko's turn to make a move. "But is _he _okay with it?"

Ken smiled. "Actually, I asked to join," he assured Akihiko modestly. "I believe I can be of some assistance..." Turning away, he stared at the floor and bit his lip. "Now, I finally know why I was given this power."

"…So, as you can see, it was his own decision," Ikutsuki finished.

"Nice to meet you all," Ken greeted maturely. "I'll try not to get in anyone's way."

Minako smirked playfully. "Ready for the wringer?"

"Thank you!" Ken replied excitedly, obviously not knowing what the leader meant.

Akihiko stared silently, obviously not enjoying this. "Hey, don't worry, kid," Junpei told Ken in an assured voice. "We got your back. It may be hard at times, but stick with it."

"Y-yes, got it!"

**[end of prologue]**


	2. C1: The Day We Met

**CHAPTER ONE: The Day We Met**

'Cause everything, everything ends at the start

I'm healing and feeling all of my scars, yeah

Say goodbye, say goodbye to the way I was before

Say hello, say hello to a new way

I was lost, but I found was I was looking for

Waking up, waking up to a new day

**NEW DAY **(Tamar Kaprelian)

**Wednesday, September 2****nd****, 2009 **

Minako sat down in her seat, relaxed, in Classroom 2-F just as lunch started. Once she sat, her phone beeped in her pocket and she quickly slipped it out of her pocket and looked at the text.

It was from Akihiko.

_ "I have something important to take care of after school. I want you to come."  
>"I'll be waiting by the gate. Meet me there."<em>

_Short and sweet, _Minako grumbled in her head.

**After School**

Minako made her way to the school gates, running off to meet up with Rio at the Wild Duck Burger, but an annoyed Akihiko was waiting by the gates. "…Oh, there you are." She stopped in her tracks, obviously surprised that Akihiko was waiting for her even though she got a text message earlier. "There's something I have to do, and I want you to come with me." Akihiko grabbed her wrist and held it firmly.

"But I had plans," Minako whined, pulling on his iron grip.

"Well, this is more important," Akihiko replied in a bitter tone.

The SEES leader eyed Akihiko's suitcase. _Where could he be taking me? _Minako thought. _What if he's going to…Oh my God, oh my God, oh my – _

Akihiko led Minako to the Iwatodai strip mall, at Hagakure Ramen. _Oh my God, oh my – It's just Hagakure…_ The dirty thoughts in her mind instantly evaporated. _This is where he wanted to go?_

"You're getting on my nerves!" Shinjiro exclaimed coolly. Minako cocked her head to the side, faintly remembering the face and eyes of that dark and mysterious person at the hospital.

"The situation has changed," Akihiko told him firmly. "Sorry, but this time, I'm not asking."

"What?" Shinjiro looked completely shocked and he squeezed the insides of his pockets, gripping his pocket watch tightly, obviously pissed off.

Akihiko thrust the suitcase he was holding to Shinjiro, making sure he held it. "This belongs to you." It was the case that held his SEES Evoker, untouched for two years.

"Ahh…" He grabbed it roughly, and kept glaring at Akihiko, not noticing Minako standing there in confusion.

"We have a new enemy," Akihiko explained, getting down to business. "They're Persona-users, like us."

"…" Shinjiro looked away, biting his lip. He knew exactly who Akihiko was talking about. "Yeah, so what?" he muttered gruffly, trying to hide his annoyance and hidden feelings.

Akihiko shook his head. "There's more. Ken Amada has joined our team." He knew that Shinjiro would react to that, and that's exactly what happened.

"What?" he cried in surprise, standing up straighter and looking at Akihiko as if he was crazy. "What the hell are you talking about?"

"He has the potential, and Ikutsuki-san has okayed it. He's now a Persona-user," Akihiko told him smugly, trying to hide a grin.

Shinjiro shook his head and took down his slumped form, over the whole ordeal. "You've gotta be kidding me." He bit his lip. "Let me ask you one thing. Was it his decision to join SEES?"

Akihiko nodded. "Yeah. He volunteered."

"…I see."

The air was tense with silence for a good three minutes.

"Then, count me in." Shinjiro turned to Minako, who jumped in surprise from his steely glare. "So, you're the one leading the operations now huh?" A nod. "If you don't mind me asking, what exactly are you fighting for?" He sounded tense, but said it very coolly.

"To protect someone," she replied with the same tone.

"Is that so?" Shinjiro forced himself to keep a straight face, a smile just waiting to appear on his face. "Well, you do your thing; I'll do mine." He shrugged and turned back to Akihiko. Minako kept staring intensely at Shinjiro, his mysteriousness drawing her in. "Is my room still vacant?"

"Yeah."

"Sheesh… Another girl?" Shinjiro grumbled to Akihiko, fully aware of Minako watching him. "First Mitsuru and now her…" He shook his head, running his hand against his forehead to flip the stray hairs away from his beanie-tucked hair.

"So what?" Akihiko rebutted, not noticing his point. "She might be a girl, but she's one hell of a –"

"That ain't my point, numbskull," Shinjiro cut in, rolling his eyes. "I'm saying you gotta keep an eye out for her. Honestly…" Minako's eyes widened in surprise. That was the thing she least expected him to say and something clicked in her head. This guy wasn't as bad as she thought. He had a heart down there and she wanted to find it…

**[end of chapter one]**


	3. C2: A Night Out

**CHAPTER TWO: A Night Out**

It was always you

Falling for me now

There's always time

Calling for me

I'm the light

Blinking at the end of the road

Blink back to let me know

**ALWAYS **(Panic! At the Disco)

**Monday, September 7****th****, 2009**

"Hey," Minako called out from the 2nd floor hallway, just as Shinjiro was walking towards the stairs. "_Hey!_ Shinjiro-senpai!" Her feet flew under her in a flurry, and suddenly she was standing in front of Shinjiro, his eyes cold and piercing against her bright red eyes. She flinched and stepped back, blinking furiously as his eyes bore into hers.

Realizing he was scaring her, Shinjiro quickly averted his gaze and grumbled, "What do you want?" His voice was gruff, deep and emotionless.

Minako turned away too, biting her lip softly. "I was just wondering if you wanted to go out and eat or something…" The feel of an angry glare made her jump in shock again. "I mean, only if you want to! I'm not forcing you or anything!"

Shinji's face softened. "Sure. Why not?"

Her face quickly brightened up, and her grin widened. "Really? Well, let's get going! I'm starving." Minako grabbed onto Shinjiro's arm and clung tightly to it as he slowly walked through the main hallway. "I'm so hungry I could eat Eligor…" she mumbled to herself, her face melting in obvious starvation.

"Might as well hurry then," Shinjiro told her, glancing at his watch and replacing it into his chest pocket. He smiled to himself and nodded his head towards the door. "Let's?"

Minako smiled wide and dragged the older SEES member towards the door, but Mitsuru sped to the exit and crossed her arms. "Where do you two think you're going?"

"Eating!"

"None'ya business."

The former leader of SEES shook her head and looked at Minako with that infamous steely glare. "Minako, you're supposed to be the mature one, since you're leading us."

"_Mature?_" Shinjiro repeated, his steely-grey eyes piercing Mitsuru's in disbelief. "You call that…_girl…_mature?" Said girl turned to Shinjiro, obviously insulted, but he disregarded her look.

Mitsuru rolled her eyes. "Looks are deceiving."

Shinjiro sighed and yawned, tugging on the arm that Minako used to keep him locked. "Let's get going." Minako nodded fiercely and pushed past Mitsuru and out the door.

"Food!"

As soon as they were out the door, Akihiko walked up to Mitsuru and asked, "What's up with them?" He was nodding towards the pair that just left.

Mitsuru took a moment to reply. "I'm not sure, exactly, but I'm confident to say that Minako will be a good thing on both his conscience and heart."

**Evening**

Minako finally released Shinjiro's arm as soon as the Hagakure ramen shop on the Iwatodai Strip Mall was in sight. "You glad?" Shinjiro asked, scratching the back of his head as he walked nonchalantly towards the little shop.

"Yeah!"

The pair was silent on the way in. Minako breathed deeply from the smell of ramen and hopped up and down excitedly in place. "Sorry for bringing you here," Shinjiro murmured quietly as he sat down in one of the seats, his eyes looking only at the menu set in front of him. "I don't know that many places to go out to eat."

Minako sat down across from him, not even bothering to look at the menu. "I like this place." They ordered their noodles quickly, Minako getting the ultra-spicy ramen noodles with chicken katsu and Shinjiro ordering a ramen bowl with curry.

Shinjiro looked up at her and took a few moments to take in her features. Short auburn hair tied in a ponytail, crimson red eyes that were excited in every way, and a petite figure that was interestingly powerful... "…You're an odd one," he finally managed to say, hiding a smile. A quiet laugh filled the air, but it soon disappeared into the sounds of noodles cooking. "Let's eat," said Shinjiro as soon as the cook had readied their orders. He blew softly on his soup, eyeing the heat steaming from the bowl intensely. "Watch the soup, it's hot." He blew on it again with a soft _phoooo_ noise. "Ow…" There was a pained expression on his face.

"What's wrong?" Minako asked, cocking her head to the side as she shoveled chopsticks of noodles into her mouth, not minding the heat or spiciness.

Shinjiro turned away. "…Forgot I had a cut in my mouth." He stuck his tongue out, and Minako noticed a small plump scar on the pink flesh. "It's 'cause Aki punched me." Taking his beanie off for a second to run his fingers through his hair, Shinjiro sighed softly. Minako noticed the messy and flat locks underneath that hat. "Sheesh, that guy's gotta learn how frickin' heavy a boxing champ punches…" Even though it sounded angry, Minako knew that inside, Shinjiro cared about the greyish-white haired senior.

"Were you two fighting, Senpai?" the younger girl asked with a pout.

He bit his lip and replaced his beanie on top of his head snugly. "Well…yeah," he finally replied. With a soft grin, he continued. "I gave him a little 'lecture' on how his fighting style's too reckless and this –" –he stuck his tongue out again—"is what I got in return." Minako stared unhappily, and shook her head unhappily. "Well, we get in fights all the time. Just get used to it."

Minako wasn't fazed. "Please try not to fight him," she whined, her blood red eyes staring straight into Shinjiro's soul.

"All right, all right, stop glaring at me like that," he gave in, wincing. Shinjiro turned away, the air in the shop becoming awkward. "But…man, you're actually younger than him…?" He tried to make his voice as nonchalant as possible. Minako looked at him, her face and eyes showing her confusion. Smiling to himself, he didn't elaborate on what he was thinking. "We're lucky that you're such a reliable leader," he told her teasingly, smiling gently.

Minako had the idea that he was saying much more than a simple tease, but she didn't ask about it as she felt a weird sensation run up her spine. A voice in her head spoke to her, but Minako paid no mind, as she decided that it was just useless information.

"...Oww," he groaned as he took a full bite of the hot noodles. Trying to put on a tough-guy act, which Minako saw through, he laughed and recalled a moment before leaving SEES. "That reminds me… I cut the inside of my mouth the first time he punched me, too." Minako smiled and continued eating, but not before patting his hand. "I couldn't eat for a while because of that."

Minako froze. "Couldn't eat_?_" she echoes with shock and disgust. "You _couldn't eat_? What do you mean? Why did he punch you?"

Shinjiro turned away in embarrassment. "…I forget. It was back when we were kids." He chuckled, almost nostalgically. After a few more bites, he sighed and pressed his fingers to the bridge of his nose. "This just ain't gonna work. I'll have to wait until it cools down."

Minako began laughing hysterically and Shinjiro joined in, until the quiet ramen shop was filled with joyful laughter.

(X)(X)(X)(X)(X)(X)(X)

Back at the dorm, Shinjiro climbed the stairs slowly with Minako silently, not needing any words to express the joy they felt, both in their mind and their full stomachs. "Sleep well," he told her, showing a ghost of a smile. His towering figure helped him put his hand onto her head and pat it tenderly. "Thanks for tonight, by the way," he quickly said before she retreated into her room.

The current SEES leader laughed and smiled, taking his hand from her head and patting it as well. "You too. And it's no problem. I love food."

Shinjiro had to smile. "I do too, Minako, I do too."

She smiled kindly and him and nodded. "Good night, Senpai!" The door shut quietly before Shinjiro could say more, and he could've sworn that she was squealing in her bedroom.

The flight of stairs to his room was more enjoyable than it ever had been, Shinjiro thought as he took out his pocket watch to check the time.

**[end of chapter two]**

_Hope you enjoyed this installment of _One Month _and I'm sorry for the delay. Please review if possible! Pleaaaseeee! I love reviews, whether their a simple 'I do/don't like it' or constructive criticism. It's all very helpful. _

_By the way, this story goes to the Moon SL if you hadn't noticed/hadn't read the other descriptions. Hope you enjoyed it and please wait up for the next installment of this story. =)_

_-Rai-chan_


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